Apple Scratter / Press Build Questions

Hi All,

I'm in the process of trying to upgrade my grinding and pressing operation and was hoping for some input.

First, for those of you that have made an apple scratter using a wood drum, where did you find the stainless steel shaft, and what diameter did you use? I've been looking for 1" thick and 18"-24" long but have been having problems finding those dimensions. Would a pipe (hollow center) work rather than a solid rod? Secondly, does anyone know of a good source for bearings, or should I just use some solid oak with vegetable oil?

As far as the press goes, I'm planning on using a hydraulic setup and have the frame in very good shape. What I've still to build however is the collection bin/base and individual racks. What are people using in to build their collection trays. If it's wood, what kind of wood did you use / or would you recommend. As far as the racks, I've read somewhere that maple slats would make excellent racks, but my back of the envelope calculation comes up with about $150 for 5 28"x28" racks. Has anyone else come up with a creative/more affordable way to build them?

On a more general note, for those of you who have built either a scratter or hydraulic style press, what recommendations would you have, or what would you have done differently?

Thanks,
Jimmy

A lot of people use solid boards for racks, sealed plywood, hdpe, that sort of thing.
There was some discussion recently on cider workshop
Have you checked claude jolicoeur's site
He describes making a drum scratter.

I posted some directions last year of my press and it seems to have been a well received idea. I just used it this weekend and for such a small press it pressed 12 gallons of cider in very little time. The details you asked about are... the collection bin is a dish bin with a hole melted into it. The racks ware plastic cutting boards cut in half.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f32/my-cider-press-220909/
I dream of Claude's grinder... I've did some research into Claude's design and found that googleing "pillow block bearings" will get you what you are looking for.

Thanks for the recommendations!

I had actually seen Claude's website before. It's definitely one of the better resources for a grinder build. I actually went into a Grainger Industrial Supply store near me with a picture of Claude's hardware and purchased it. They were very helpful once I told them what I was building.

For reference for anyone else doing the project, I purchased the following:

0.5 inch diameter steel shaft (I hope that half inch will do the trick)
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/THOMSON-Linear-Bearing-Annealed-Shaft-2HXB7

Uhmw-Pe Bearings (plastic and stainless steel)
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/ww...uery=1F638&op=search&Ntt=1F638&N=0&sst=subset

and several shaft collars
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/RULAND-MANUFACTURING-Shaft-Collar-2ADN4?Pid=search

It's off to home depot tomorrow morning to buy some additional supplies!

I'll give everyone an update once I complete.

-Jimmy

Jimmy,

Can you tell us how it turned out ? Was the 1/2 inch bearing and rod sturdy enough ? What where the dimensions of your drum ? Thanks

Unfortunately, the scratter is not yet complete. The motor we were going to use ended up not working. Still in search of cheap electric motor to run the thing.

We ended up running a piece of maple firewood through a lathe and the drum turned out pretty good.

This will end up being put on hold until next year as we've gone ahead and pressed everything over the last couple of weekends using our garbage disposal from last year. Definitely looking forward to not having to quarter apples! We ended up with 95 gallons this year.

Hopefully I'll have an update long before next fall!

-Jimmy